


The Struggle of Gift Giving

by madmeridian



Category: Death Note & Related Fandoms, Death Note (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alpha Mello | Mihael Keehl, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Courting Rituals, Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Omega Near
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:53:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,638
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26829919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madmeridian/pseuds/madmeridian
Summary: It had been something Matt had brought up. Just mentioned in passing, a small note in a long conversation. Yet, that little note had forced its way into Mello’s head and refused to leave.
Relationships: Mello | Mihael Keehl/Near | Nate River
Comments: 12
Kudos: 55





	The Struggle of Gift Giving

The idea had been something Matt had brought up. It had been mentioned in passing, a small note in a long conversation. Yet, that little note had forced its way into Mello’s head and refused to leave. 

All Matt had commented was that Mello and Near had never gone through a courting phase as most couples do.

It wasn’t all that important to Mello. After all, he had never thought about it before now. But that small reminder planted a thought that he couldn’t get out of his head. He hadn’t given Near anything and now that it had been pointed out, his more instinctual side was pushing for him to get Near some sort of gift. 

The next step was to get a gift so he could stop thinking about it, but found himself unsure of what to get. What the hell could Near, of all people, possibly want?

He’d already ruled out any food, mainly because he was a terrible cook and Near was extremely picky. He could fuck that up too easily. 

Obvious gifts, like flowers and jewelry, would probably be seen as insulting, considering Near didn’t wear jewelry, nor did he give a shit about things like flowers. Near wasn't a stereotypical Omega anyway and Mello would end up on the couch if he was somehow stupid enough to treat him as such. 

So here he was, scrolling aimlessly through his computer for anything he could buy. He didn’t bother looking in the section for Omegas, which listed only those stereotypical options he knew Near wouldn’t like. 

The only thing he had found so far was a set of thick socks. Near got cold often so they would do him some good. 

But who the fuck gave their Omega socks??? 

Was that a good enough gift? Near would use them, no doubt. They were practical enough. Not some insulting, useless garbage.

After about an hour of further searching, he settled on the socks. There was nothing else he could get that he thought Near would actually like. He resolved to go to the store next time. He could always default to an action figure or toy of some sort, which would delight Near no matter what. Even if Near being delighted was only him giving a tiny smile. 

He shut down his laptop and groaned, feeling dumb for doing this. He’d wasted too much time on this whole endeavor. It wasn’t even that big of a deal, since their relationship was long past courting. After he gave the gift to Near, he would feel better and the nagging thoughts would leave. At least, that's what he hoped.

The socks arrived the next day. They were thick and soft and, mostly importantly, white. Mello hoped Near would like them. 

He ambled down to their room, vaguely nervous about this whole thing. The last thing he needed was Near to be suspicious and figure out what he was doing.

Near was curled up on their bed, which was currently a mess. Near had been stressed about his cases recently and had turned their bed into a nest. Mello was fine with it so long as Near let him in to cuddle and do something a little more… active. As it was, Near was barely visible under the mound of blankets. Mello could just see his white curls sticking out. 

“Get up,” Mello said, patting where he thought Near's leg might be. “I have something for you.” 

Near blinked at him slowly, having been half-asleep. He sat up, pushing off some blankets, and rubbed at his eyes. Mello loved when Near was like this. Sleepy eyes and messy hair. 

God damnit, he couldn't get distracted now. He needed to focus on the task at hand. Deliver the gift without being suspicious.

“What is it?” 

“I bought these for you,” Mello said, producing the socks which had been hidden behind his back. Near gently took them and ran his fingers over the material. His eyes were still a little glazed over with tiredness, but they got much sharper as they observed the gift. 

“I like them.” 

Mello could see the gears turning in Near's head. He knew something was up.

“I thought you would.” 

“Why did you buy me these?” 

“Do I have to have a fucking reason? I just saw them and thought you would like them,” Mello defended. _Damn it._

“You don’t have to,” Near said calmly. “But you’ve never given me a gift for no reason before.” 

“Well, I just wanted to this time.” 

“Thank you.” Near looked up at him. “Are you busy?” 

“No, what's up?” 

Near didn’t answer, but he scooted over on the bed and looked up at Mello expectantly. Mello, unsurprised that this was want Near had wanted, shrugged off his jacket and climbed into bed, settling behind Near. He curled an arm over Near’s waist and pressed a kiss to the back his neck. 

Well, the socks had been a success, at least. 

* * *

He went for a stuffed animal the next time. It was a plush he'd found at the store, just a simple bear, but it was white. It'd reminded him of Near, so he'd just grabbed it without thinking. And again, was stuck with the dilemma of trying not to act suspicious as he gave this gift. Mello really had believed that any more thoughts about courting would've been gone by now, but he was sorely mistaken. As such, he'd bought the bear. He hid it behind his back, waltzing into their bedroom. Near was playing with his dominoes on the floor. 

“Hey.” 

Near looked up at him. This time, he noticed the hand behind Mello's back and his eyes narrowed suspiciously. 

“Mello,” Near greeted. “What do you have there?” Mello grimaced. This wasn’t quite the way he was hoping this would go.

“I saw this at the store,” Mello said, technically telling the truth. “I thought you would like it.” 

Mello showed him the bear. Near didn’t take it from him, staring at it blankly. 

“You don’t have to take it if you don't like it.” Mello began to pull the stuffed animal back, but Near took it before he really could. 

“I do like it,” Near insisted. “I’m just… tired. I needed a moment.” 

Near had seemed more tired lately, so Mello figured that wasn't necessarily untrue. The corners of Mello’s lips twitched up. Near was staring at him, brow slightly furrowed. 

“Well, I'm glad you like it. I just happened to see it at the store." 

"Mhm," Near said. Mello tried not to grimace at that. Near didn't believe him for a second. 

He'd just have to be more subtle next time, though Mello was convinced that there would be no next time.

* * *

The third thing was a thick blanket. It was heavy and, like his other two gifts, soft. He wasn't intentionally giving Near soft things, a stereotype of Omegas, but he did genuinely love things that felt that way. There was a reason he wore pajamas more than anything. 

He padded into their room. No sense in hiding this one, as it was larger than his previous gifts. 

This time, he couldn't even see Near's hair poking out. He was sure that the Omega was in there somewhere. 

“Near?”

"Yes?" 

“Want another blanket?” Mello asked, holding out the blanket. Near was buried under a mound of blankets already, but his arm shot out for it. Mello also noted that some of his clothes were tucked into the nest. It was common for Near to snag Mello’s shirts when he did it. 

Near was quiet for a moment, rearranging his pile. Mello thought he was in the clear for suspicion, that Near would settle in and go back to whatever he was doing. Of course, Near had to prove him wrong.

“You’re courting me,” Near said suddenly. 

“I’m not,” Mello spat back immediately. Near scoffed at him. 

“You’ve never consistently given me gifts,” Near argued. “And yet, I’ve received three in the past week and a half. Not to mention, they’re all comfort items. Alphas generally give their Omegas such gifts. We aren't usually very normal, but I assume that in this case we are.” 

“So what if I am courting you?” 

“Nothing. I was just observing. Although, you are aware that normally courting goes both ways? I would have liked it if you told me. I didn’t realize we were doing this.” 

“It's not that serious,” Mello snarled. “We aren’t doing it. I just need to do this so I can get this out of my head.” 

“What are you talking about?” 

“Matt mentioned it the other day.”

“Courting?”

“No, the weather,” Mello said dryly. “Yes, for fuck’s sake. He mentioned we never did it.” 

“Well, perhaps if we did it properly, it would ease your mind,” Near suggested. “It’s not fair of you to get me gifts and not let me give to you too.” 

“Fine,” Mello grumbled. “We’ll do it properly.” He supposed there might be some truth to Near's logic. His instincts hadn't been settled by the gift giving that much, so he was willing to do it. 

“Will you tell me what you want?” Near asked. 

“Fuck no,” Mello laughed harshly. “I have had the worst time figuring out what to get you. You get to suffer too.” 

“But you know I would like any toys,” Near pointed out. “You could get me anything, dominoes, dice, robots, action figures, and I would be happy. I don’t know what to get you.” 

“You’ll figure it out,” Mello said, kissing Near on the forehead. “I want to see what you come up with.” 

Near protested, but Mello reminded him that he would like any gifts that Near would give. 

Besides, he really did want to see what Near would give him. 

**Author's Note:**

> This was sitting in my drafts and I started thinking about it which led to me editing and then posting. I don't really remember writing it actually, but uhhhh here it is. I remember that I wrote it because I wanted to do some ABO without smut and I remembered that courting was a thing in some ABO AUs, which resulted in this. I do think I wrote this when I was cold though. I want fuzzy socks and thick blankets lol
> 
> And I'm slowly working on the ideas that have been sent to me. Hoping to have the next one out by the end of this week if I'm able, but no promises. I'm also trying to get a new multi chapter fic all done! I've really missed doing that. I like writing smaller stuff, but I really enjoy multi chapter stuff (and interacting with people on those fics). I don't know when it'll be done though, but hopefully soon! 
> 
> Thanks for reading! Any comments or kudos are appreciated! I'll do my best to respond to any of your comments


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